Any person who has ever used a chain saw is readily aware of the difficulty of holding a saw in a secure position while performing certain types of servicing. For example, filing or resharpening the cutting elements on the chain of the chain saw is difficult, because of the awkward position of the saw and the need to hold the saw very stable. This is particularly true when the servicing is carried out in the field, rather than in a service shop.
Consequently, a vise has previously been developed to rigidly hold the blade of a chain saw during such servicing. This known device includes a clamping mechanism for gripping the blade, and has several spikes which are similar to large nails and which can be driven into a piece of wood such as a log, a stump or a piece of timber, in order to anchor the device. Although this known vise has been generally adequate for its intended purposes, it has not been satisfactory in all respects.
More specifically, in addition to the vise itself, a large hammer or similar tool is usually required to drive the spikes into the piece of anchoring wood. Further, as a practical matter, it can be difficult to drive the spikes into a piece of wood even with a good hammer, because the spikes tend to back themselves out of the wood after they have been driven a half inch or so into the wood. Further, the forces exerted during the sharpening process often cause the spikes to progressively work loose within the holes in which they are disposed, as a result of which the vise becomes progressively more unstable, to the point where it may become necessary to remove and re-anchor it two or three times before the sharpening job is completed. This can be time consuming and aggravating, and often results in a poorer job than would otherwise be the case.
Accordingly, one object of the present invention is to provide an improved chain saw vise which can be installed without any need for an additional tool such as a hammer, which does not have a tendency to work its way back out of a piece of anchoring wood as it is being installed, and which will remain solidly anchored in the wood throughout the servicing operation, even if the wood is relatively soft.
A further object is to provide such a vise which is compact, and which fits easily in a tool box or in a case used to carry the saw.
A further object is to provide such a vise which is simple in structure and thus easy and inexpensive to mass produce, and which can be rapidly and easily installed in a piece of anchoring wood.